This invention concerns machines which remove deep snow from roadways, driveways, etc. by conveying the snow to an impeller which throws the snow some distance from the machine, either to be collected for transport or into a pile some distance from the roadway.
A common arrangement is the combination of a rotating auger-screw conveyor the front of the machine which feeds snow into a separate central impeller.
This arrangement consumes considerable power since it pulverizes the snow, grinding it into a powder. The auger is also used to break up packed snow, which it does but quite-inefficiently as it utilizes a scraping action to accomplish this.
The impeller also consumes considerable power in throwing the snow in the finely powered condition in which it is received by the impeller from the auger.
These inefficiencies require high horsepower engines, which result in heavy and costly machines.
It is the object of the present invention to provide a combination of elements which efficiently breaks up the snow and propels the same away in such a manner that only a considerably reduced horsepower is required for a given application.